Airbus: Pilots don't really need windows

By AUBREY COHEN, SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF

Published 9:31 pm, Wednesday, July 2, 2014

A cockpit with viewing screens could go at the base of the vertical tail, and possibly still have windows for seeing to the front and sides of the aircraft.

Photo: Airbus/U.S. Patent And Trademark Office

A cockpit with viewing screens could go at the base of the vertical...

A flight deck with viewing screens in place of windows could go in the cargo hold.
Photo: Airbus/U.S. Patent And Trademark Office

A flight deck with viewing screens in place of windows could go in...

A flight deck with a viewing screen could remain at the front of the aircraft, below the traditional spot. It could include a window (50, above) through which passengers could view the pilots at work and a pilot rest area under the floor (51).
Photo: Airbus/U.S. Patent And Trademark Office

A flight deck with a viewing screen could remain at the front of...

A flight deck with a viewing screen could remain in the traditional spot at the front of the aircraft, while still allowing for a more aerodynamic shape, thanks to smaller windows (40, above).
Photo: Airbus/U.S. Patent And Trademark Office

A flight deck with a viewing screen could remain in the traditional...

Pilots navigate an aircraft with a viewing screen in place of windows on the ground.
Photo: Airbus/U.S. Patent And Trademark Office

Pilots navigate an aircraft with a viewing screen in place of...

A flight deck with viewscreens is shown in flight in this Airbus image.
Photo: Airbus/U.S. Patent And Trademark Office

A flight deck with viewscreens is shown in flight in this Airbus...

A pilot uses a holographic screen to navigate around bad weather. The image includes an image of an assistant pilot on the ground (36).
Photo: Airbus/U.S. Patent And Trademark Office

A pilot uses a holographic screen to navigate around bad weather....

A pilot uses a holographic screen to navigate around bad weather. The image includes an image of an assistant pilot on the ground (36).
Photo: Airbus/U.S. Patent And Trademark Office

Future airliner flight decks may do away with windows and move out of the nose of the aircraft, according to Airbus.

The European airplane maker filed a patent application Dec. 23, published June 26, for a flight deck that relies mostly or entirely on electronic viewscreens.

The first advantage is aerodynamic, since flight deck windows require interrupting the ideal scalpel shape of the nose, Airbus wrote. Also, big windows and the reinforcement required for them add weight to the aircraft.

Putting the flight deck at the front of the cabin takes valuable space away from the cabin, "thereby limiting the financial profits for the airline company exploiting the aircraft," Airbus wrote.

Without the need for windows, the flight deck could move "to an unused zone of the aircraft, and in particular into a zone difficult to configure for receiving passengers or freight," Airbus wrote. One possibility is the base of the tail, where the flight deck could still have some windows. Another is in part of the cargo hold.

Finally, relying more on viewscreens would improve pilots' perception and awareness, by giving a more complete view of what's going on outside the aircraft, according to Airbus.

In addition to the viewscreens, Airbus envisions a system that could project holograms of objects such as storm clouds and ground obstacles, and chart a course around them.

"The object of this preferred version is to immerse the pilot in a three-dimensional universe, at the center of the action," Airbus wrote.

Click through the gallery above to see images from Airbus' patent application.